Dem Heavies Back the Centrist in VA Primary; Webb Wins

At last, some refreshing pragmatism. Even Kerry and Schumer recognize that only decorated Vietnam vet, author, and former Republican James Webb has a chance to beat George Allen for the Senate in November.

Webb, whose military cred is unimpeachable -- he was Ronald Reagan's Secretary of the Navy -- has consistently opposed the Iraq war since before it began. From 2002:

Webb has been a vocal critic of the Bush administration's Iraq policy, calling it, in an op-ed in the Washington Post, a distraction from the fight against al Qaeda. [ . . . ]

[In]a speech [ . . .] at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey [ . . . Webb warned] that a war in Iraq -- and a possible long-term occupation of the country -- would be a critical mistake.

"We should not occupy territory in Iraq," he said. "Do you really want the United States on the ground in that region for a generation?

"I don't think Iraq is that much of a threat," said Webb, an opinion rarely heard among current or former Republican administration officials.

The combination of proven toughness with prescient common sense gives Webb enormous appeal in a time when Democrats nationwide must show that they won't back down from a fight, but will pick their fights with strategic wisdom.

One bad sign, though: the Virginia turnout sucked.

Election officials said just over 3 percent of voters went to the polls, far less than the 16 percent who voted in the 1996 primary between Republican Sen. John W. Warner and former Reagan budget director James C. Miller III.

"I just don't understand," said Jean Jensen, secretary of the state Board of Elections. "It's dismal. It's not even very high in Fairfax County," where both candidates live.